Kevin Locke, an acclaimed Native American flute player, hoop dancer, cultural ambassador and educator, died Friday night. Earlier in the day, he had given a performance at Crazy Horse Memorial near Custer. He was 68.
An enrolled member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and from the ancestral line of Lakota and Anishinabe, Locke died after returning to his hotel room in Hill City, his son Ohiyesá Locke said Monday. Ohiyesá Locke said his father suffered an asthma attack and died while he was being taken to the hospital.
Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Eagle’s Landing Lodge in Custer. There will be a noontime Lakota meal, followed by burial at 2:30 p.m. at Bell Park Cemetery in Rochford. A ceremony to release Locke’s spirit is planned Saturday on Standing Rock Indian Reservation, Ohiyesá Locke said.
Ohiyesá Locke, of Killeen, Texas, told the Associated Press he had been video chatting with his father several hours before he died.
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“He was walking through the Black Hills and telling me how beautiful they were, and he talked about some of the history of the Lakota people,” he said.
Whitney Rencountre, Crazy Horse Memorial CEO, posted a tribute on Facebook about Locke and his final performance, noting how pleased Locke was to see a busload of students from Oglala Lakota Oyate arrive.
“I invited them in to dance with (Kevin). His eyes lit up and he went on teaching them and got them dancing with him, while showing them how to use a hoop. He was singing old songs he said he rarely shares in presentations, almost like he knew it would be his final time sharing them,” Rencountre said.
Rencountre said he and Locke considered one another nephew and uncle though they were not related by blood. Rencountre traveled to South America with Locke and said Locke made a worldwide impact.
Locke visited Crazy Horse Memorial at least yearly for special events and for a week of performances, Rencountre said. Locke will be mentioned during Native American Day events at Crazy Horse Memorial, and a tribute to Locke will be held in the future at the memorial, Rencountre said.
“We in the Native community are so proud he shared the message of our people on pretty much every corner of Earth. The fact that he dedicated his life to doing that – we’re very proud of him and we’ll continue to carry him with us in our hearts,” Rencountre said.
According to his website, Locke performed for nearly 40 years for hundreds of thousands of people in more than 90 countries at performing art centers, festivals, schools, universities, conferences, state and national parks, monuments and powwows.
Wherever he travelled, he shared Lakota stories and histories and defended Lakota ways. He was honored with a National Heritage Fellowship and a Bush Enduring Vision Award. He also won Native American Music Awards for his flute albums.
Indigenous artist and educator
As a folk artist, Locke used his talents to teach others about Native American history and especially enjoyed working with children on the reservations to ensure the survival and growth of Indigenous culture, the website said.
He taught hoop dancing to his children and others. A biography from Locke’s family said Locke received the hoop dance from Arlo Goodbear, a Mandan-Hidatsa relative.
“Just start jumping around,” Goodbear joked, and Locke began learning with six hoops. Goodbear died very suddenly before he and Locke could meet for more practice. The biography said Locke continued to receive teachings through dreams.
“Me and my sisters used to travel with my dad and we’d perform. We all know how to dance,” Ohiyesá Locke said.
“I remember when he first started hoop dancing, he kept doing it, perfecting his craft and eventually that was his livelihood,” his son said. “He educated through a new vision for his life and he followed his path in life.”
Born in Los Angeles in 1954, Locke lived in locations around the United States including Alaska, Colorado and Virginia, his son said. According to a biography from his family, at age 16, Locke began hitchhiking his way across North America. Throughout his lifetime, he visited every continent and more than 237 Indigenous homelands. He often traveled with his children or other relatives.
Locke attended high school at the Institute of American Indian Arts in New Mexico. Locke studied at Black Hills State University, earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of South Dakota and a master’s degree in educational administration from the University of North Dakota, his son said.
Ultimately, South Dakota is where Ohiyesá Locke said he and his three sisters were born.
Locke initially planned a career in education, serving as the principal at Standing Rock Grant School for two years before deciding he never wanted to work a 9-to-5 job again, a biography from his family said. Instead, teaching about the Lakota language and culture became his livelihood.
Locke was a fluent, self-taught speaker of the Lakota language. While living in the Little Eagle community, “he would go around and record the elders and he taught himself to speak Lakota. It’s very difficult (the language),” Ohiyesá Locke said.
Locke served as a board member for the Lakota Language Consortium, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving the language. Ohiyesa Locke said two of his sisters speak Lakota.
Locke also became a renowned player of the North American flute. A biography provided by his family said Locke was gifted his first flute by his mother, Patricia. As a young man, Locke saw actor and musician Richard Fool Bull playing the Indigenous flute. After the presentation, he approached him to ask who else could play.
“No one,” Fool Bull replied.
“That’s too bad; someone should carry this on,” Locke said.
“You’re right,” Fool Bull said. “You should carry this on.”
And so the flute tradition was passed on to Locke. As he was taught, he practiced every day before dawn. When he and his sisters were growing up, Ohiyesá Locke said he remembers hearing his father play the flute for hours and hours.
“Not just melodies. Those are songs that have Lakota words. Those are traditional songs he plays on his flute. Those are passed down through generations,” Ohiyesá Locke said.
Since 1982, Locke recorded 12 albums of music and stories, most recently “The First Flute,” “Open Circle," “Keepers of the Dream,” and “Dream Catcher,” according to his website.
The Native American Music Awards issued a statement Saturday after learning of Locke’s death.
“Kevin Locke was undoubtedly one of the greatest flutists, hoop dancers and teachers the world had ever seen. He will be greatly missed. The Native American Music Awards would like to extend their deepest condolences and sorrow to his family,” the statement read.
Spiritual legacy
Ohiyesá Locke remembered his father Monday as a knowledgeable man who was always reading and learning and who had an amazing vocabulary. Locke was a deeply spiritual man, as well.
“My dad was a believer in his religion, the Bahá’í faith. One of his main missions was unification of the human race,” said Ohiyesá Locke, saying his father opposed discrimination, racism and conflict.
Locke believed in human rights and equality. He was a man who practiced what he preached, Rencountre said.
“He was a very enlightened individual with a good heart. He wanted people to have love and respect for each other,” his son said. “He lived his life believing in not being materialistic. He treated his body like a temple. He took care of himself physically, mentally and spiritually.
"I have always been in admiration of him, and he wanted me to follow in his footsteps. But his shoes were too big to fill,” he said.
“He was a gifted man, a gifted individual. A lot of people say ‘There’s only going to be one Kevin Locke. There’s not one that can fill his shoes. He had a purpose in life and he followed it down its path,” Ohiyesá Locke said.